Details About Sirenomelia (Mermaid Syndrome)

By Tauqeer Ul Hassan

Sirenomelia or Mermaid Syndrome is a very irregular congenital deformity in which the legs of the patient merged together in such a way so as to appear like a mermaid's tail.

This syndrome is very rare and occurs in one out of 100,000 live births. The first couple of days after birth are very critical due to its complications, which arise from the abnormal bladder development, kidney and function. It has been seen that more than half of sirenomelia cases result in stillbirth and this condition is more common in identical twins than in single births or fraternal twins. Although, often-maternal diabetes is associated with sirenomelia and caudal regression syndrome, this thought is opposed by number of sources.

This condition is very critical with high mortality rate, but yet few patients without typical kidney and bladder complications have able to survive. Following are given the brief history of three such patients:

Milagros Cerrón

She was born in Huancayo, Peru on April 27, 2004. Although, most of her internal organs such as heart and lungs are in good condition, her several internal organs were defective. She was born with a deformed left kidney and the other small one located extremely low in her body. The same tube was shared for her urinary, digestive tracts and genitals. These defects are caused in the urogential system by malformations in the intermediate mesoderm.

Silicon bags were inserted between her legs to stretch the skin through a successful operation in February 8, 2005. An operation was conducted on May 31, 2005 for the sake of separating her legs. Another operation was conducted in association with the previous operation to complete the process of separation on September 7, 2006. Milagros took her first steps couple of weeks after the successful operation.

However, the doctor of Milagros warned her that she still needed 10 to 15 years of therapy before she will be able to live a normal life and these extended periods of therapy includes many critical operations and surgeries.

Tiffany Yorks

Tiffany Yorks born in United States on may 7, 1988 and she is currently the longest surviving patient with sirenomelia. Before she was one, she went through several surgeries for her legs to be separated. No matter how successful the surgeries were, she is still not strong enough to get around, as her fragile legs don't support her much. She normally uses crutches or wheelchair.

Shiloh Pepin

She was born in August 4, 1999 in Kennebunkport, Maine, United States. She was born with her lower extremities fused, without uterus and bladder, no vagina except 6 inches of the large colon and just one quarter of kidney and ovary. At the age of three, her natural kidney failed and a successful kidney transplant was performed. In 2007, second kidney transplant was performed. Unfortunately, she died of severe pneumonia at Maine Medical Centre, Portland, Maine at the age of ten on October 23, 2009.

You might want to learn more about Mermaid Syndrome [http://www.mermaidsyndrome.org/].

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